germany paper 1

• what is the reichstag?


  parliment
• who is the chancellor


  chief minister
• german emperor is also known as 


  kaiser
• before ww1 germany wanted to be as powerful as britian so they began building up germanys industry
• the process of industrialisation developed germany's factories, mines and workshops. by 1913, germany was producing more iron and steel and as much coal as britian
• the working class joined trade unions and organised strikes to force the kaiser to increase wages
• the imbalance in wealth and working conditions (prior to ww1) between business owners and workers led many workers to support socialism
• some socialists were extreme communists who wanted to rebel against the kaiser and take over the country
• the kaiser wanted to increase germanys power and influence by expanding its empire and taking control of other countries
• taxes had to be raised and money borrowed to pay the huge sums of money needed to grow the navy and army. this sent germany into debt
• due to ww1 germany was close to collapsing
• germany was almost bankrupt as a result of borrowing money to fund the war and lending money to its allies
• german factories were worn out and losing money for 4 years they had been producing war equipment, rather than goods to sell abroad for a profit
• the monarchy ended as the kaiser abdicated and left germany
• germany had to pay £6.6 billion in yearly instalments for 66 years. the economy was already struggling at this time due to high inflation
• they payed the first instalment in 1921 in goods like coal and iron which went to france and belgium (reparations)
• in 1922 the government announced they couldn't afford to pay but france and belgium didnt believe this and went by force into ruhr and took control of every factory, mine and railway
• printing money to satisfy workers on strike led to hyperinflation
• hyperinflation meant

  people who had borrowed money found it very easy to pay off debts
• because germany would now be a democratic republic


  it meant this was the start of the weimar republic
• left wing


  communists
• right wing


  capitalists, they were nationalistic such as the nazis
• the weimar constitution agreed that germany would be led by the president and chancellor, supported by a parliment
• the weimar constitution aimed to be fair. men and women had equal rights, including the right to vote.
• no one political party could easily dominate or pass laws without the support of the other parties
• the spartacists


  believed in communism. they wanted germany to be run by small councils of soldiers and workers, not by a large parliment
• the spartacists attempted to seize power in berlin with guns. the free corps (hated the left wing) recaptured important buildings and arrested and tortured the spartacist leaders ending the revolt
• stresemann's influence on germanys recovery


  was chancellor for a few months then germanys foreign minister from 1924 till his death in 1929
• stresemann was a right wing nationalist who had the support ebert never had
• stresemann stopped printing money and reset the economy by changing to a new temporary currency
• this stopped hyperinflation but whoever had savings lost it, mostly middle class people and they blamed the government
• stresseman went to usa who lent them money to invest in infrastructure and economy and started paying reparations again
• he negotiated the reparations and reduced it by billions- success

  (dawes and young plans)
• germany was dependant on the americans which was a high risk strategy
• after he died the wall street crash occured having a catastrophic effect on germany because their economy was based on americas loans
• in 1924 stresseman signed the locarno pact with france and britain promising not to invade each other's borders
• locarno pact meant that germany could join the league of nations
• germany was allowed to join the league of nations
• 1928 - kellog briand pact required germany to accept the territory changes made in the treaty of versailles which germans were not happy with
• stresemann starts rebuilding schools, hospitals, factors with borrowed money from usa. germany became more prosperous